It's been a month since we heard about the creation of the new studio Fool's Theory that was created by former CD Projekt Red and their co-operation with IMGN.PRO. While IMGN isn't a huge publisher it has worked with indies and not too long ago released their first inhouse game, Kholat, a horror walking sim experience that was absolutely beautiful in Unreal Engine 4. With the talent here it was going to be quite interesting to hear what this team up would be working on... and they announced today the 3D, isometric RPG Seven.
Seven is a 'beyond post-apocalyptic' world, which basically means what you think of when you think post-apocalyptic in games. You aren't alone, society has begun to rebuild and there is a mix of dark ages with highly advanced technologies in this world where the Vetrall Empire stands. The Empire is at the heart of this new world and where Seven takes place with its sandbox world. Citing Thief as an inspiration the game also includes parkour skills that are not particularly common in RPGs, allowing a lot more freedom of movement with the various obstacles.
Jakub Rokosz, the founder of Fool's Theory and the project lead at IMGN.PRO explained what they are wanting to do with Seven: "Our greatest ambition is to bring a breath of fresh air into classic, isometric role playing games - a genre where the player was traditionally chained to the ground. Seven will bring a new type of exploration as well as open new possibilities for tactical planning and stealth gameplay. We are fully aware how big the challenge is, but it only gives us a greater motivation."
Some members of Fool's Theory were workers on Witcher 3's story, which should serve them well in dealing with this wort of future. It is a setting that lends itself well to gray and grey morality and an absence of black and white choices as there is a challenge to survive and thrive for all that survived the cataclysm that came before.
From what they sent out this is how Seven begins capturing some of the grim humor and the situations of the world that the game inhabits, "Huh? How did I end up in here? Well shit, that ain’t no mystery. I walked up to them guards outside and politely asked if our beloved Emperor Drugun hadn’t made up their entire holy scripture while sitting on the crapper. They laughed, I laughed, they kicked my face in and threw me inside. Fair trade if you ask me. ‘Cos you know what? Heh. That fat sack Drugun isn’t the only one looking for something in them buildings...."
IMGN.PRO's work on Kholat will bring with it knowledge of Unreal Engine 4 as well as some fantastic artists given the way Kholat looked and the concept art so far looks great. One of IMGN.PRO's founders, Bartosz Moskala spoke about the project in general, as well as the size of the team saying: "Finally, we can unveil our new project that has already been in progress since June. We are setting the bar for ourselves on a brand new level, aiming to achieve a cutting edge gaming experience. The IMGN.PRO development team, freshly supplemented with the former Witcher 3 devs, currently consists of 16 experienced gamedev professionals, working full time on Seven."
16 people isn't a huge number but we have seen indie games produce some absolutely incredible stuff with teams that size or smaller. They may also bring on outside talent as production goes on. You can find out more about the game at their official website as information comes out.
